Germany to send additional Patriot system to Ukraine
- April 14, 2024
- Posted by: OptimizeIAS Team
- Category: DPN Topics
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Germany to send additional Patriot system to Ukraine
Subject: Science and tech
Section: Defence
Context:
- Germany will provide Ukraine with an additional Patriot air defense system to bolster its defences against increasing Russian airstrikes.
Details:
- This decision reflects ongoing efforts to strengthen Ukrainian air defence capabilities, which have previously included deliveries of the US-made Patriot systems designed to counteract Russian drone and cruise missile attacks.
- The US has committed to selling Ukraine equipment worth up to $138 million to maintain and upgrade its HAWK air defence systems, following the previous deployment of HAWK interceptor missiles as an enhancement over the smaller, shorter-range Stinger systems.
Patriot Air Defence System:
- The Patriot (MIM-104), which stands for Phased Array Tracking Radar for Intercept on Target, is the U.S. Army’s most advanced air defense system.
- It is an all-weather surface-to-air missile defence system to counter tactical ballistic missiles, cruise missiles, and advanced aircraft.
- It was developed by Raytheon, an American multinational aerospace and defense conglomerate.
- The system was first used in combat during the 1991 Gulf War, with batteries protecting Saudi Arabia, Kuwait, and Israel, and was later used during the U.S. invasion of Iraq in 2003.
- It is in service with the US and allied countries, including Germany, Greece, Israel, Japan, Kuwait, the Netherlands, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Poland, Sweden, Qatar, the United Arab Emirates, Romania, Spain, and Taiwan.
- Features:
- It is a mobile system that usually includes powerful radar, a control station, a power generator, launch stations, and other support vehicles.
- Depending on the version in use, the interceptor missiles can reach an altitude of more than 24 kilometres and hit targets up to 160 kilometres away.
- Its radar can track up to 50 targets and engage five of them at once.
- It is equipped with a track-via-missile (TVM) guidance system. Midcourse correction commands are transmitted to the guidance system from the mobile engagement control centre.
- A Patriot battery can need as many as 90 troops to operate and maintain it.
Other Air Defence Systems in the news:
Air Defence Systems | Description |
1. HAWK Air defence |
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2. Very Short-Range Air Defence System (VSHORADS) |
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3. HQ-9 (Hong Qi 9) |
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4. Terminal High Altitude Air Defense System (THAAD) |
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5. S-300PMU |
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6. S- 400 Triumf (SA-21 Growler) |
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7. Iron Dome System |
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8. Arrow-3 Missile Defence System |
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